My First Krypto

Recurring-Buy (DCA) Calculator

Dollar-cost averaging (DCA) means buying a fixed amount on a schedule — say $100 a month — instead of a single large purchase. The appeal is that it spreads your entry across many prices, so you buy more when the price is low and less when it's high, rather than betting everything on one moment. This calculator shows what a fixed recurring contribution would be worth after a number of periods, under a return you assume. It's a tool for understanding the mechanics, not a crystal ball.

Read this first: the return is an assumption you set, not a prediction. The calculator applies whatever annual return you type. It does not know what Bitcoin or any asset will do, and no one else does. Set it to 0% to see the pure effect of your contributions alone, or a positive or negative figure to see how sensitivity works. Nothing here is financial advice, and past performance never predicts future results.
A hypothetical chart: a volatile orange price line versus the smoother blue growth of regular recurring contributions over time
Regular contributions smooth out timing risk — a hypothetical illustration, not a forecast.

Use the calculator

Runs entirely in your browser. No account, no wallet connection, no data sent anywhere.

How to read the result

  • Total contributed is simply your amount times your number of periods — the money you actually put in.
  • Projected value is what that stream of contributions would be worth at the end, grown at your assumed return. The formula compounds each contribution from the point it was made, so earlier contributions have more time to grow.
  • Projected gain (or loss) is the difference. At a 0% assumption it's zero by definition — the value equals what you contributed. Move the return up or down to see how sensitive the outcome is.
The honest takeaway. DCA reduces the risk of a single badly-timed purchase, but it does not remove the underlying risks: the asset can still fall, and a long stream of contributions into a falling asset is still a loss. It's a way to participate gradually, not a strategy that guarantees a result. Understand the risks before you commit to a recurring purchase — see crypto risks.

Frequently asked questions

What return should I put in?

Whichever assumption you want to test. 0% isolates the effect of your contributions. A positive number shows optimistic growth; a negative number shows drawdown. The point is to see how much the outcome depends on an assumption you can't actually know — which is the whole reason to keep any position sized to what you can afford to lose.

Does this account for fees?

No. Real recurring purchases also incur fees on each buy, which would reduce the net amount invested. To estimate that, see our fee calculator and apply it per purchase. The DCA figure here is the gross, before fees.

Is DCA better than a one-time purchase?

There's no universal answer. DCA smooths timing risk; a one-time purchase is simpler and, over very long horizons, the average outcome of the two is similar because you can't control prices. Choose based on your comfort with volatility, not on the idea that one is "safer" in a guaranteed sense.

Where to go next

Pair this with how to make a first purchase, estimate your per-purchase cost with the fee calculator, and keep the bigger picture in view with crypto risks.

How to Buy Bitcoin: A Risk-Aware First Purchase

A step-by-step guide to a first Bitcoin purchase: what to decide before you spend, the actual steps, the fees you'll meet, and how to protect what you buy.

Crypto Fees Explained: The Four Costs Behind Every Purchase

Buying crypto costs more than the price you see: a spread or trade fee, a network fee, and sometimes a deposit or withdrawal fee. Here's what each is.

Crypto Risks: What Can Actually Go Wrong, and How to Reduce It

Volatility, irreversible transfers, lost keys, exchange failures, and scams — the real risks of crypto, explained honestly, with practical ways to reduce each one.

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